notes on the fridge

[madscenes]

NOTES ON THE FRIDGE
You're sharing a space: a home, an office, a Batcave, whatever. But you're busy and your schedules don't quite match up -- but you have plenty of note paper! Time to leave a note (or two)!

instructions:
- comment with your character name & canon in the subject line + if you just want one-on-one interactions (1:1) or you're open to anything (ota)
- in your top level leave a starter note - a shopping list, a reminder, just a comment, whatever you'd like
- others reply to this note!
- you can "edit" notes by copy/pasting them and striking out words, adding doodles, writing over/under, or just add another note!
- if the commenter is ota, jump in on other people's threads! maybe you're all sharing the space as a group or team! please don't jump into threads if they're marked 1:1!
- do you sign the note or leave it anonymous? do you recognise the handwriting?
- have fun!

Comments

lan wangji | the untamed

[quietroom]

[ Because he is That Extra, he has arranged an old Tang dynasty poem on the fridge over a series of post-it notes:

The moon, grown full now over the sea,
Brightening the whole of heaven,
Brings to separated hearts
The long thoughtfulness of night....
It is no darker though I blow out my candle.
It is no warmer though I put on my coat.
So I leave my message with the moon
And turn to my bed, hoping for dreams.

[singlelogbridge]

[His husband is So Extra, and Wei Wuxian has never been more in love. It takes him a while to decide exactly how to respond, but the next day Lan Wangji will find a smattering of post-it notes next to his own, the familiar messy scribbles of Wei wuxian's handwriting clear across the neon sticky notes.]

You are my summer breeze my winter sun, my springtime soul,
my autumn touch of gold
You are my sky my rain, the earth in which my love grows strong
The smile of my heart and the breathe of my soul
Even if we find ourselves apart
We will hold our hopes and dreams
Forever in our hearts]

[There are two kinds of people.]

[quietroom]

[ It takes him a few minutes to place the lyrics, and they make him roll his eyes and huff. But it's a ridiculously fond huff, and he carefully collects the post-it notes to preserve.

The new post-it notes read: ]

When those red berries come in springtime,
Flushing on your southland branches,
Take home an armful, for my sake,
As a symbol of our love.

[singlelogbridge]

[Realizing that they're going to run out of space quickly and that Lan Zhan has the right idea, Wei Wuxian carefully removes his husband's first poem, tucking it away into a notebook, sure his sap of a husband did the same. (Maybe they'll put them together, later.)

The next one takes him a little more work, committed as he is to modern (ish. It's modern to them alright?) pop. After an hour or two on google, he's finally happy with his choice and he tacks it up next to Lan Zhan's with an amused smile.]

I've been hearing symphonies
Before all I heard was silence
A rhapsody for you and me
And every melody is timeless
Life was stringing me along
Then you came and you cut me loose
Was solo singing on my own
Now I can't find the key without you

And now your song is on repeat
And I'm dancing on to your heartbeat

[quietroom]

[ He actually has to dig to find this one, typing lyrics into Google and listening to the song before figuring out what to respond with. The notes get tucked away in proper order.

(Perhaps he should buy a scrapbook for these. Not as elegant as a chest, but easier to look through.) ]

But [...] I straightened my brows and laughed,
Learning that no dust could ever seal our love,
That even unto death I would await you by my post
And would never lose heart in the tower of silent watching.

[singlelogbridge]

[This one prods at his memory and before he forms a reply he finds himself digging through their collection, needing suddenly to see the poem in its entirety. It takes more than an hour mostly because he gets lost in reading and when he does find it, warmth suffuses his entire being, his heart aching with love. Lan Zhan is too much. He's really too much.

It's easier for him to respond this time, a lyrical affirmation of Lan Zhan's verses coming quickly.]

There's no mountain too high
No river too wide
Sing out this song and I'll be there by your side
Storm clouds may gather
And stars may collide
But I love you
Until the end of time

[It doesn't have the poetic grace of the ancient poets, but he thinks it conveys what he wishes it to quite nicely.]

[quietroom]

[ These lyrics tugs at his memory as well, although it's the sentiment that makes him smile and his heart swells with love. They're working on proving those lines right.

He finds the song. Listens to it a few times, adds it to his list of movies to rewatch some night, his heart still light.

Finding a response takes a little longer and he has to alter two words, may the masters forgive him. ]

Lakka-trees ripen two by two
And mandarin-ducks die side by side.
If a true-hearted man will love only his husband,
In a life as faithfully lived as theirs,
What troubling wave can arrive to vex
A spirit like water in a timeless well?

[ He'll have to move on from the ancient poets eventually, but these are as familiar and beloved, and when he feels a certain longing for Gusu, he returns to them. ]

1/2

[singlelogbridge]

[Instead of a poem, there is a single post-it placed squarely on top of Lan Zhan's last group of notes, a tiny scribbled sketch to convey his feelings on the matter.]

[singlelogbridge]

[But he can't just leave it like that, so a while later, a new set of notes appears as he tucks away some more into his notebook. He's straying from the top 40 pop theme he was going for but what else can he do in the face of Lan Zhan's picks?

For this he needs the songs hidden at the bottom of popular tracklists that don't get any radio play. Those and indie songs.]

Walking between the raindrops
Riding the aftershock beside you
Off into the sunset
Living like there's nothing left to lose
Chasing after gold mines
Crossing the fine lines we knew
Hold on and take a breath
I'll be here every step
Walking between the raindrops with you

1/2

[quietroom]

[ The post-it note of Wei Ying gets a special spot in his collection. (Really, he's going to get that scrapbook now. It's on his list.) He answers with a post-it note drawing of his own: a sketch of himself, blowing a kiss, the word "Never" written just above it. ]

2/2

[quietroom]

[ The actual response takes a day, since he needs to track down the right poem. He writes it out in traditional Chinese, his calligraphy small but still flawless, even when done on post-it notes with an average pen. ]

I want to be your love for ever and ever,
Without break or decay.
When the hills are all flat,
The rivers are all dry.
When it thunders in winter,
When it snows in summer
When heaven and earth mingle,
Not till then will I part from you. 

[ It is a common enough poem, and no better than the pop songs, but he is a romantic, at heart. ]

1/2

[singlelogbridge]

[Nope. He's dead. Lan Zhan has killed him. He is dying and will soon be dead and Lan Zhan will have to dispose of his body because he is going to lie here and DIE. What the fuck, Lan Wangji? Wei Wuxian sits at the kitchen table and breathes deeply, willing his heartbeat to settle.

Everyone says they want to be with someone romantic but that's just because they don't understand what it's actually like to be with someone romantic! It's hell! It's the worst! He can't do anything without being attacked! Once he's done with his dramatic fit and has stopped swooning enough to think clearly, he begins hunting through albums and sifting through youtube playlists, frowning at every single song he considers.

Eventually he settles on one later that night, scribbling first a single note.]

I think we both know there isn't a pop song in existence that can hold up to that (and you!!!) but I'm not done playing <3

[singlelogbridge]

[And then, scrawled across a brand new pack of aquamarine post-its]

Let me uncover the silver in your dark hair
The weight of your bones
I want to witness the beauty of your repair
The shape you’ve grown
For you are made of nebulas and novas and night sky
You’re made of memories you bury or live by

So if you’re out there in the cold
I’ll cover you in moonlight
If you’re a stranger to your soul
I’ll bring you to your birthright
I want the storm inside you awoken now
I want your warm bright eyes
To never look away
Don’t you ever look away

[quietroom]

[ Every day, he loves Wei Wuxian that much more. Every day brings him a gift that he thought lost. He's always been gracious and understands how to demonstrate proper gratitude. For his husband, that means displaying the depths of his love. So Wei Wuxian is just going to have to continue to deal with his romantic tendencies. ]

The Chinese poets are not the only ones who know of love.

[ And then, beneath that, lines from another poem. ]

I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where,
I love you directly without problems or pride:
I love you like this because I don’t know any other way to love,
except in this form in which I am not nor are you,
so close that your hand upon my chest is mine,
so close that your eyes close with my dreams.

[ There's a scrapbook laid out on the coffee table in the living room, with the sketch of Wei Wuxian on the first page, and the rest of the post-its that Lan Wangji's kept properly displayed, in the correct order, with spaces for the ones Wei Wuxian kept.

(He knows very well they were kept.) ]

[singlelogbridge]

[Okay maybe? But also everything he's choosing is too beautiful to compare! Wei Wuxian lets out a gusty amused sigh and then gets to work. At this point, he's creating a youtube playlist as he works and he's definitely going to send it to Lan Zhan when they're done.

He takes the time first to add his half of the (indeed carefully preserved) notes to the scrapbook, sticking Lan Wangji's sketch on the first page with his own and then adding his new addition to the fridge.]

I can’t pull you closer than this
It’s just you and the moon on my skin
Oh, who says it ever has to end

Let’s let the stars watch
Let them stare
Let the wind eavesdrop
I don’t care
For all that we’ve got, don’t let go

Just hold me

[quietroom]

[ It began as something of a jest, but each little song Wei Wuxian shares makes his heart sing. That night, he holds his husband close. Which is really... not that unusual. But his hands are a little more tender, his voice full of affection he normally doesn't allow to seep into his speech.

The next morning, there are a few more post-it notes than before because he needed to share the entire poem. ]

You and I
Have so much love,
That it
Burns like a fire,
In which we bake a lump of clay
Molded into a figure of you
And a figure of me.
Then we take both of them,
And break them into pieces,
And mix the pieces with water,
And mold again a figure of you,
And a figure of me.
I am in your clay.
You are in my clay.
In life we share a single quilt.
In death we will share one bed.

[singlelogbridge]

[The embarrassment soaked affection that usually plagues him whenever Lan Zhan says (or writes) anything especially devoted doesn't come when he wakes near noon and reads the newest addition, his mind still a hazy warmth of remembered touches that render him immune. Instead, he smiles sweetly, sprawling in one of the kitchen chairs with pleasantly aching muscles.

He reads and rereads the words, taking each note off the fridge to study closely and let them resonate with his heart.

Wei Wuxian goes about his day in a daze, mumbling the words to himself in the grocery store and in the subway, always with a soft smile slipping over his lips.

After dinner, Lan Zhan takes a call and Wei Wuxian takes his turn. He finds his song and has finished with only one of his post-its when Lan Zhan's call ends and they get distracted. Later, when Lan Zhan is sleeping, he slips out of bed and makes his way back over, finishing his work so that it will be there for Lan Zhan in the morning. It's his shortest contribution yet, simple, sweet, and he hopes unmistakable in its adoration.]

This is devotion, I am lost
You're the only one I see
Our bodies in motion, I am caught
Floating in your gravity

[quietroom]

[ Normally, he tucks the post-it note into a folder or somewhere special, or leaves it up until he can return to write his own. That morning, when he sees the note, he tucks it into his shirt pocket, just above his heart, hidden beneath his jacket.

He writes his newest note later, once again selecting just a few lines from the poem to write out. ]

[...]again and again the two of us walk out together
under the ancient trees, lie down again and again
among the flowers, face to face with the sky.

[singlelogbridge]

[This one takes Wei Wuxian less time, having built up an arsenal of songs found to be unfitting for previous responses, he picks out one that he'd been eyeing earlier and seems to fit just right now.

The other post-its get lovingly placed into their scrapbook and he notes with some amusement that it won't be long until they've filled the book.]

We belong to the stars
Two eternal hearts
We belong to each other's arms

With heaven so close
Every light illuminates
But I will stay, I will stay

Falling closer to the sky
Write your name right next to mine
And we'll sleep with the satellites

[quietroom]

[ He draws a dozen stars on a post-it note, writing the calligraphy for their birth names beneath two of the stars that appear to be close together.

It is utterly whimsical and completely ridiculous. But his next selection is sweet, highlighting a point he loves about Wei Wuxian. ]

Laugh at the night,
at the day, at the moon,
laugh at the twisted
streets of the island,
laugh at this clumsy
boy who loves you

[singlelogbridge]

[The post-it note full of stars gets its own page in their book, right in the center. Later, Wei Wuxian will find stickers or perhaps a star dotted background sheet to complete the look. For now, he slides it behind the film of the scrapbook, takes a picture, and sets it as his new phone background.

He looks for something with laughter but stalls his search in favor of something else instead. It feels appropriate.]

Time stands still
Beauty in all he is
I will be brave
I will not let anything take away
What's standing in front of me
Every breath
Every hour has come to this

I have loved you for a thousand years
I'll love you for a thousand more

[quietroom]

[ He's the one to break, standing there staring at the post-it note for longer than necessary. He puts it in the scrapbook. His response is straightforward and direct, with no embellishment or poetic words. Just this: ]

I love you.

[singlelogbridge]

[For this, Wei Wuxian does not leave a note of his own. Instead, he goes to find his husband straight away, answering in action in ways that words can't match.

Later, much later, he will not place the last note in their new scrapbook. Instead, he'll let it remain on the fridge for weeks until the post-it's adhesion has all but faded, the note barely still dangling. Only then will he remove it and add it to the rest.]